NEW ORLEANS – For 75 years Brennan’s has remained at the center of the culinary and cocktail culture of New Orleans – and, CBS This Morning: Saturday agrees! Reporting from Brennan’s, catch Ralph Brennan, a third-generation scion of the family whose name is synonymous with New Orleans restaurants, share the incredible traditions and stories behind this iconic French Quarter dining institution. CBS This Morning: Saturday correspondent Jamie Wax and Ralph Brennan will be joined by Haley Bittermann – Executive Chef of Ralph Brennan Restaurant Group [RBRG], whose been with the company for 25 years; Titus Perkins an Executive Kitchen Manager and 20 year veteran of RBRG; and Ryan Hacker, Executive Chef of Brennan’s, who made history as the youngest chef to ever lead this esteemed restaurant kitchen.
Established in New Orleans in the 1840s, the Irish Channel clan of Brennan’s began with the arrival of Ralph Brennan’s grandfather and his father’s brother and uncle, Owen Brennan, a man admired in the community as a beacon of stewardship and a visionary “dedicated to the art of the enjoyment of eating.” Dating from 1795, built by the great grandfather of famed impressionist painter, Edgar Degas, the building at 417 Royal Street saw a long history of various enterprises before becoming Brennan’s in 1956, with its signature pink facade and distinctive Creole cuisine, which inspired continual praise and loyal patronage until its doors closed in June 2013. It reopened – restored and reborn in November 2014 – emerging as one of the most polished restaurants in all of America.
Ninth-generation New Orleanian and entrepreneur Terry White, partnered with Ralph Brennan to continue the legacy of this universally acclaimed establishment dedicated to the pure pleasure of fine dining. Famed for “Breakfast at Brennan’s” and the creation of the signature flaming Bananas Foster dessert, originally invented in the 1950s – Brennan’s today is a dazzling display of New Orleans’s illustrious past, preserving it for a new generation of patrons. The fine food is set in a glamorous atmosphere born of the architecture and decor of the French Quarter. The personable, and attentive service underscores a unique and sophisticated dining experience that lives on in every visitor’s memory – as the tradition of Brennan’s continues!
Ralph and his team’s determination, resilient can-do attitude, and deep investment at a personal level have made Brennan’s a central figure, once again, in the restaurant industry that is at the heart of the city, itself.
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